prelims

British

/ prəˈlɪmz, ˈpriːlɪmz /

plural noun

Also called: front matter. the pages of a book, such as the title page and contents, before the main text
the first public examinations taken for the bachelor's degree in some universities
(in Scotland) the school examinations taken as practice before public examinations

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of prelims

C19: a contraction of _{preliminaries}

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

prelims

She said: "I remember thinking, something's not right here. All of my friends and people I know that wanted to do medicine weren't getting the grades that they got in their prelims."

From BBC ● Oct. 28, 2026

Saturday's card moved swiftly with seven of the eight fights across the prelims and main card ending inside the distance.

From BBC ● Jun. 6, 2026

“I don’t care about the hype,” he said following Friday’s prelims at Buchanan High, where he earned spots in the finals in all three of his events.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 30, 2026

Fighters on the prelims like Wood and Jones don't get as much media attention or promotion from the UFC - and strikingly less money than their headlining peers.

From BBC ● Mar. 22, 2026

We only ever had two days to get reacquainted, prelims Saturday and finals on Sunday, and then there was the matter of being there to compete.

From "The Miseducation of Cameron Post" by emily m. danforth

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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023